


tell me you feel the same

by ardentiia



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Ambition, Best Friends, Caspar von Bergliez Being an Idiot, Claude is a wingman, Claude von Riegan is a Little Shit, Devotion, Exploration, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Friendship/Love, Gossip, Hilda and Caspar are just really cute ok, Hilspar, Knight, Mentioned Dorothea Arnault, Mentioned My Unit | Byleth, Mentioned Sylvain Jose Gautier, Mutual Pining, Oblivious Caspar von Bergliez, Pining, Pre-Relationship, Secret Crush, The Great Fodlan Bakeoff, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, challenge, did I mention I love hilspar?, i don't have a beta lmao, no beta we die like Glenn, secret, wrote this in two days lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:01:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24636508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ardentiia/pseuds/ardentiia
Summary: She pulls away, but not too far, still kneeling in his embrace and their hands are still connected. His heartbeat is deafening in the silence, pounding in his ears as he waits for her to giggle, to say that it was all a joke and they can go back to being best friends now.But does he really want her to say it? He isn’t sure. All he knows is that Hilda Valentine Goneril is the prettiest girl in Garreg Mach and his best friend. He’s been in love with her for as long as he can remember, but this is the first time that he dares to think that she might feel the same.---Hilda and Caspar are best friends, and when she invites him to go with her and explore a secret spring that Claude found, who is he to say no?Read: Hilda get some alone time with Caspar, but not in the way they expect.
Relationships: Caspar von Bergliez & Hilda Valentine Goneril, Caspar von Bergliez/Hilda Valentine Goneril
Comments: 12
Kudos: 23





	tell me you feel the same

“Guess what Claude just told me?”

Caspar instantly recognizes her voice as a plate thumps down beside his, laden with pasta. Hilda Valentine Goneril, the prettiest girl in Garreg Mach. Also his best friend, and if anyone tried to hurt her, he’d punch the living daylights out of them. 

Like that one time Sylvain tried to make a move on her. Hey, at least he got away with only one black eye. Hilda had scolded Caspar afterwards, but once she was done chastising him, she’d sighed and given him a kiss on the cheek.

“My knight,” she’d said, and just seeing her smile had made all the ranting worth it.

He probably wasn’t _supposed_ to have thoughts about his best friend. Scratch that, he _definitely_ wasn’t. She was way better than him, she definitely didn’t like him _that_ way, and one day, she’d marry a noble with a Crest. Then where would he be?

In the beginning, he’d come to Garreg Mach to make a name for himself through his fighting skills, but being a noble had always held him back. Until he met Hilda. Wild and free, being around her was like taking a breath of fresh air after days of smog and smoke. She let him be whoever he wanted. And in the days by her side, he’d finally figured out where he would be. 

He would protect her, even if it killed him. He would fight for her until his arms gave out because she was worth it. She’d always be worth it, no matter what people said about her.

He would be her knight.

“Don’t tell anyone, but apparently, there’s a secret spring below Garreg Mach,” she whispers, snapping him out of his thoughts. “He offered to show me the way yesterday.”

“And?” Caspar spears the last sausage on his plate with his fork. “Where is it?”

“Well I...turned him down.”

“You WHAT?”

“Not so loud!” she hisses, eyes darting to the side. It’s the middle of lunch break, but the only people nearby are Sylvain and Dorothea. They’re both talking animatedly to the professor, who seems bored. But then again, Caspar could never tell what she was thinking. 

“Sorry,” he says, lowering his voice slightly. “So why’d you turn him down? A hidden spring? That’s so cool!”

She scratches the back of her neck, averting her pink eyes. “I didn’t really turn him down, I just said I wanted to...invite other people to check it out.”

“Like who?” Caspar stuffs the sausage into his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. He holds up his fingers, beginning to tick off possibilities before he realizes that he doesn’t know who Hilda likes. They never really talked about stuff like that; Hilda would always look away and change the subject whenever it came up, so he’d let it drop. She trusted him completely, more than anyone else, so who was he to pry?

“Like...you.” Hilda’s cheeks light up with pink as she ducks her head, her hair swaying with the motion. 

Caspar stares at her for a moment, still processing what she said. It hadn’t occurred to him that she would even want to ask him, since a hidden spring seemed like a sort of romantic getaway couples would want to go to, and they definitely didn’t fit that category. But he wasn’t going to complain. Maybe there’d be monsters, and she was concerned about her safety. In that case, he had to go! To protect her.

“Yeah, of course!” he says after quickly swallowing the last bite of his food.

“Y-you’ll come?” Her eyes light up in excitement, and she nearly upends her plate as she lunges to hug him. “That’s great! I promise you, it’s going to be amazing.”

Caspar grins, feeling his neck scorch red as he hugs her back. He can’t focus with the feel of her arms and chest pressed up against him, her hair brushing his ears as she buries her face into his chest. 

“Okay, lovebirds, ready to go?”

They spring apart as Claude nudges his way in between them, a smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth as he steals a forkful of pasta from Hilda. Caspar can’t see around Claude’s shoulders, but he doesn’t even try as he breathes in deeply to slow his rapid heartbeat. _Bad Caspar_ , he scolds himself inwardly as he stares down at his plate to avoid meeting her eyes. _Hilda’s your best friend. Off limits! Focus on that._

But Goddess above it’s so hard to focus.

“I knew you’d pick him,” Claude says to Hilda, the shit-eating grin still on his face. He lets out an oof as Hilda smacks him on the shoulder.

“Whatever, Riegan.” She stands, leaving her plate untouched as she grabs Caspar’s hand and marches out of the dining hall, not waiting for Claude to follow. Caspar calls out apologies to the students who jump out of their way as he’s dragged along, eliciting several stares from those still enjoying lunch.

“You’re going the wrong way!” Claude calls after them.

“ _Whatever_ , Riegan!”

* * *

Claude led them down a series of twisted pathways until they arrived at a door, still strong but covered in dust from years of disuse. 

“After you,” he says, opening the door and gesturing inside. The path beyond the door is completely swamped in shadow, and Caspar finds himself wishing he brought a torch as he steps inside. At least he had the foresight to always carry his gauntlets.

The striking of flint behind him makes him whirl around, but it’s just Hilda, carrying a now-lit torch as she walks in behind him. “Claude, you didn’t say it’d be this dark,” she shouts back, moving the flame near the walls to inspect the interior space.

Claude doesn’t respond, and when Caspar peers around Hilda’s shoulders, he only catches a faint glimpse of Claude’s panicked expression as the door swings shut behind them.

“No!” Caspar lunges towards the door, but it slams in his face, throwing him backwards. Hilda tries to catch him with her other arm, but his weight brings them both down to the floor, sending the torch clattering to the side.

It sputters once, twice, before dying out, leaving them in complete darkness.

For a long moment, neither of them says anything. Then-

“Caspar? Are you there?”

Caspar swings his hand in front of him blindly, and when it collides with hers, they lace their fingers together. He scoots along the floor, using the wall as a guide as he finds her shoulder with his. She gives his hand a reassuring squeeze, even as her words shake.

“Yeah, I’m right here, Hilda. Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“No, I’m fine. You?”

“I’m good. I’m so sorry about the torch, this is all my fault-”

“Don’t apologize. This is my fault for dragging you along. If I hadn’t convinced you to come, you’d still be safe, outside.”

He leans back, staring up into the impenetrable darkness. Up, down, left, right, it doesn’t have any meaning anymore. He might be staring into nowhere for all he knows, but Hilda’s presence, her warmth, grounds him. The only stability he has now, and he clings to it desperately, like a dehydrated man to the first water he’s seen in days.

“I’m safe wherever you are, as long as you’re with me.” He puts his arm around her slim shoulders, feeling her hair tickle his skin. “But I’m supposed to be your knight. I just wanted to protect you, but I couldn’t even get that right.”

She shifts until she’s facing him, curled up in the pocket his arm makes with his body. He can feel her breath on his as she snuggles closer, and his face goes red, even though he knows she won’t be able to see his blush in the darkness.

“You know why I’m not afraid right now?” she whispers. “Because I don’t need to worry when a big, strong guy like you is here to keep me safe. You’ll always be my knight, Caspar. Always.”

He fumbles for words, and looks down at her, or at least, the patch of shadow where he can feel her sitting. “You’re shaking though,” he blurts out, feeling her arm tremble against his.

She laughs. “Well then, you’ll just have to warm me up.”

Her hand reaches up to caress his cheek, and he doesn’t dare move as her thumb traces a path across his lips. When her mouth meets his, she nearly crashes into him in the complete darkness, but he grabs her hips to steady her as she leans in.

The kiss reminds him of butterfly wings, delicate and dancing across his lips as she pushes closer. He always felt so nervous about fragile things, as if they might break apart at the slightest touch, but Hilda is nothing like them. She’s strong, fearless, and a warrior at heart. Other people might call her lazy, but she is perfect in his eyes. 

His Hilda.

She pulls away, but not too far, still kneeling in his embrace and their hands are still connected. His heartbeat is deafening in the silence, pounding in his ears as he waits for her to giggle, to say that it was all a joke and they can go back to being best friends now. 

But does he really want her to say it? He isn’t sure. All he knows is that Hilda Valentine Goneril is the prettiest girl in Garreg Mach and his best friend. He’s been in love with her for as long as he can remember, but this is the first time that he dares to think that she might feel the same.

**Author's Note:**

> Wrote this for the 2020 Great Fodlan Bakeoff challenge! The prompts were: exploration, secret, ambition, devotion, with a bonus theme of gossip. 
> 
> I didn't have much time to think this through, so, you know, when my mind blanks, it goes to HILSPAR! I just love writing them. Sue me.
> 
> Hilda and Caspar are best friends but both secretly like each other?? Caspar isn't as oblivious as you thought, he just doesn't think he deserves Hilda (they deserve each other! Fight me!). Claude is the wingman and purposefully locks them up together (7 Minutes of Heaven but with a supposed "secret spring," read: abandoned room). Don't worry, they do get out of the room afterwards (Claude lets them back out) but their relationship is changed forever... (Claude gets a beating from the both of them. Actually, Hilda beats him up while Caspar tries to stop her, but not really. They both got to confess, so it's a win for all three of them?). 
> 
> You'll just have to find out what comes next later...if I do continue this... ;) (I probably won't. I might? Idk. We'll see if I get any more motivation).
> 
> Find me on Twitter! [@ardentiia](https://twitter.com/ardentiia)


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